Numbers 19:13

19:13 Anyone who touches the corpse of any dead person and does not purify himself defiles the tabernacle of the Lord. And that person must be cut off from Israel, ¹  because the water of purification was not sprinkled on him. He will be unclean; his uncleanness remains on him.

Numbers 19:20-21

19:20 But the man who is unclean and does not purify himself, that person must be cut off from among the community, because he has polluted the sanctuary of the Lord; the water of purification was not sprinkled on him, so he is unclean.

19:21 “‘So this will be a perpetual ordinance for them: The one who sprinkles ²  the water of purification must wash his clothes, and the one who touches the water of purification will be unclean until evening. ³ 

Numbers 6:12

6:12 He must rededicate ⁴  to the Lord the days of his separation and bring a male lamb in its first year as a reparation offering, ⁵  but the former days will not be counted ⁶  because his separation ⁷  was defiled.

Numbers 31:23-24

31:23 everything that may stand the fire, you are to pass through the fire, ⁸  and it will be ceremonially clean, but it must still be purified with the water of purification. Anything that cannot withstand the fire you must pass through the water. 31:24 You must wash your clothes on the seventh day, and you will be ceremonially clean, and afterward you may enter the camp.’”

Leviticus 15:20

15:20 Anything she lies on during her menstruation will be unclean, and anything she sits on will be unclean.

Zechariah 13:1-2

The Refinement of Judah

13:1 “In that day there will be a fountain opened up for the dynasty ⁹  of David and the people of Jerusalem ¹⁰  to cleanse them from sin and impurity. ¹¹  13:2 And also on that day,” says the Lord who rules over all, “I will remove ¹²  the names of the idols from the land and they will never again be remembered. Moreover, I will remove the prophets and the unclean spirit from the land.

Colossians 1:1

Salutation

1:1 From Paul, ¹³  an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,

¹ sn It is in passages like this that the view that being “cut off” meant the death penalty is the hardest to support. Would the Law prescribe death for someone who touches a corpse and fails to follow the ritual? Besides, the statement in this section that his uncleanness remains with him suggests that he still lives on.

² tn The form has the conjunction with it: וּמַזֵּה (umazzeh). The conjunction subordinates the following as the special law. It could literally be translated “and this shall be…that the one who sprinkles.”

³ sn This gives the indication of the weight of the matter, for “until the evening” is the shortest period of ritual uncleanness in the Law. The problem of contamination had to be taken seriously, but this was a relatively simple matter to deal with – if one were willing to obey the Law.

⁴ tn The same idea is to be found now in the use of the word נָזַר (nazar), which refers to a recommitment after the vow was interrupted.

⁵ tn The necessity of bringing the reparation offering was due to the reinstatement into the vow that had been interrupted.

⁶ tn Heb “will fall”; KJV “shall be lost”; ASV, NASB, NRSV “shall be void.”

⁷ tc The similar expression in v. 9 includes the word “head” (i.e., “his consecrated head”). The LXX includes this word in v. 12 as well.

⁸ sn Purification by fire is unique to this event. Making these metallic objects “pass through the fire” was not only a way of purifying (burning off impurities), but it seems to be a dedicatory rite as well to the Lord and his people. The aspect of passing through the fire is one used by these pagans for child sacrifice.

⁹ tn Heb “house” (so NIV, NRSV), referring to dynastic descendants.

¹⁰ map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.

¹¹ tn Heb “for sin and for impurity.” The purpose implied here has been stated explicitly in the translation for clarity.

¹² tn Heb “cut off” (so NRSV); NAB “destroy”; NIV “banish.”

¹³ tn Grk “Paul.” The word “from” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the sender of the letter.